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prepared by Rabbi Eliezer Chrysler
Kollel Iyun Hadaf, Jerusalem

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Rosh Hashanah 4

ROSH HASHANAH 2-10 sponsored by a generous grant from an anonymous donor. Kollel Iyun Hadaf is indebted to him for his encouragement and support and prays that Hashem will repay him in kind.

Questions

1)

(a) Koresh may well have donated all the needs of the Beis Hamikdash out of his own pocket - nevertheless, he did so for the sake of his own self- interest, so that Nechemyah should pray to Hashem for the well-being of himself and his children.

(b) Chazal say that someone who declares that he will give Tzedakah so that his sick son should recover, or so that he should go to Olam ha'Ba - is nevertheless a Tzadik ...

(c) ... if he does so regularly (i.e. one is not termed a Tzadik for one solitary act).

(d) We do not apply this principle to Koresh - because he was a Nochri (this Sugya clearly does not agree with those who hold that Koresh was the son of Esther - which would make him a Jew), and it is only to a Jew that it applies (because a Jew will not retract from the Mitzvah, even if his son does not live; he will rather ascribe his son's death to his own shortcomings), and not to a Nochri, who considers his stipulation to be binding (and if G-d does not respond, he will blame Him).

2)
(a) Alternatively, Koresh turned sour, not in connection with the *donation* of the materials, but in connection with the instructions that he issued for the Beis Hamikdash's *construction* - because, when he donated the materials for its construction, he made sure that, should the Jews rebel, the Beis Hamikdash should be built in such a way as to be inflammable. This he did by ordering one row of wood to be built, for every three rows of stones.

(b) Shlomoh Hamelech too, constructed one row of wood for every three rows of stone - but whereas *he* placed the row of wood on top of the stones, Koresh placed it underneath; *he* sunk the wood into the building, Koresh made sure that it protruded; *he* plastered the wood with lime, Koresh did not.

(c) Rav Yosef (and some say Rebbi Yitzchak) ascribe Koresh's wickedness to - the bitch that sat at his side, and which he placed there for immoral purposes.

(d) We learn from the Pasuk "va'Hayu le'Basar Echad" - that bestiality is forbidden even to Nochrim (since, seeing as a person cannot conceive from an animal, they cannot become 'one' via their child).

3)
(a) The Pasuk in Daniel describes how Beltshatzar, together with his princes, and, among others, his 'Sheigal', were drinking wine. Bitches will drink wine - if they are trained to do so.

(b) If 'Sheigal' means a bitch, then what David Hamelech means when he writes "B'nos Melachim ... Nitzav Sheigal li'Yeminecha, be'Kesem Ofir" is - that they will merit the good quality gold of Ofir, because the Torah is as dear to them as a bitch to the Nochrim.

(c) Others say that 'Sheigal' really means a 'queen' - Rabah bar Limah quoting Rav however, had a tradition that there in Nechemyah, it refers to a bitch.

4) We offer a fourth interpretation of Koresh's sin: Initially, we point out, he offered limitless materials) without specifying amounts; but when it came to the crunch, he fixed the quantity of each commodity. It seems that he deteriorated between the initial offer and the time of the building. We refute this contention however - on the grounds that it would have been the most natural thing for Koresh to offer unlimited materials before knowing how much was required, and then of specifying the amounts once it was known how much was needed. It cannot therefore, be construed as a sign of wickedness.

5)

(a) When the Tana give Rosh Chodesh Nisan as the Rosh Hashanah for Regalim, Rav Chisda explains - he means the Yom-Tov which occurs in the month following Rosh Chodesh Nisan.

(b) When Rebbi Shimon says in a Beraisa that sometimes one has three Yamim- Tovim on which to bring one's Korbanos, sometimes, four and sometimes, five (before transgressing 'Bal Te'acher') - he means that if one made a Neder to bring a Korban before *Pesach*, then one had until after Sukos (three Yamim- Tovim) before transgressing; before *Shavu'os* or before *Sukos*, he had until Sukos a year (five and four Yamim-Tovim, respectively).

(c) The Tana Kama of Rebbi Shimon holds - that one transgresses 'Bal' Te'acher' after the third Yom-Tov, irrespective of which is the first.

(d) Consequently, the author of our Mishnah, (which presents Nisan as Rosh Hashanah for the Regalim), must be Rebbi Shimon - in whose opinion Pesach and then Shavu'os, must precede Sukos, before Bal Te'acher comes into effect, and not the Tana Kama - according to whom the sequence makes no difference.

4b---------------------------------------4b

Questions

6)

(a) 'Bal Te'acher also pertain to ...
  1. ... Kodshei Bedek ha'Habayis and to ...
  2. ... Tzedakah.
(b) 'Bal Te'acher' also pertains to Leket, Shikchah and Pei'ah - either if he took them be'Isur (and subsequently became obligated to repay the poor), or if he left them in the field, but no poor people came to claim them, in which case, he must take them and give them to poor people who subsequently appear on the scene.

(c) According to Rebbi Meir, 'Bal Te'acher' applies already after the *first* Yom-Tov - according to Rebbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov, it applies only after *two* Yamim-Tovim.

(d) In the opinion of Rebbi Elazar b'Rebbi Shimon - Bal Te'acher comes into effect after Sukos (irrespective of when the obligation began).

7)
(a) The source for the opinion of ...
1. ... the Tana Kama, according to whom 'Bal Te'acher' applies after *three* Yamim-Tovim - is the fact that, after having discussed the Shalosh Regalim in Re'ei, the Torah inserts the phrase "be'Chag ha'Matzos, u've'Chag ha'Shavu'os u've'Chag ha'Sukos", a phrase which seems to be superfluous. It must therefore be coming to tell us that after (any) three Yamim-Tovim, one transgresses Bal Te'acher.
2. ... Rebbi Shimon, who learns that it applies only after three Yamim-Tovim in their *right order* - because otherwise (even according to the Tana Kama, he maintains), why does the Torah mention Chag Sukos, which it has just discussed?
(b) Rebbi Meir learns that it applies after *one* Yom-Tov from "u'Vasa Shamah va'Heveisem Shamah". According to the Rabbanan - that Pasuk comes to teach us that after one Yom-Tov, one transgresses an *Asei* for not bringing his Korban by the end of the first Yom-Tov.

(c) Rebbi Meir says that if there is already an Asei to bring it by then, then it stands to reason that the La'av of Bal Te'acher will automatically apply for someone who fails to bring it by then.

8)
(a) Rebbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov learns his opinion (*two* Yamim-Tovim) from "Eileh Ta'asu la'Hashem be'Mo'adeichem" - which is written in the plural, thereby implying two Yamim-Tovim.

(b) The Rabbanan learn from the word "be'Mo'adeichem" - that all the Regalim are compared to each other (Rebbi Yonah's Hekesh), to teach us that all the Se'irei Chata'os (the goats of the Chata'os) brought on each Yom-Tov, come to atone for the same sin (namely, the Tum'ah of the Mikdash and its Kodshim).

9) Rebbi Elazar b'Rebbi Shimon learns that it all depends on *Chag ha'Sukos* - because the Torah sees fit to mention "Chag ha'Sukos", even though it has only just discussed it (though this is not in conjunction with "be'Chag ha'Matzos, u've'Chag ha'Shavu'os", in the way that Rebbi Shimon explained it earlier).

10)

(a) Rebbi Meir and Rebbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov learn from the Pasuk "be'Chag ha'Matzos, u've'Chag ha'Shavu'os u've'Chag ha'Sukos" - the Derashah of Rebbi Elazar Amar Rebbi Oshaya, who learns from there to compare Shavu'os to Pesach, to give it seven days of Tashlumin (i.e. the seven days after the first day of Yom-Tov, to complement the Korbanos that one did not bring on the first day), just like on Pesach.

(b) Initially, we explain that we cannot compare Shavu'os to *Sukos* (to give it *eight* days Tashlumin and not just *seven*), because Shemini Atzeres is an independent Yom-Tov, and not part of Sukos - on the grounds that Shemini Atzeres is an independent Yom-Tov in six specific area only. These are known as 'Pezer Keshev', the acronym of Payas, Z'man, Regel, Korban, Shirah, B'rachah, but not in any other regard.

(c) We nevertheless know to compare Shavu'os to *Pesach* in this regard, rather than to *Sukos* - from the principle 'Tafasta Merubah, Lo Tafasta' (one always learns from the smaller number [from *Pesach*, which has *seven* days, rather than from *Sukos*, which has *eight*, because the smaller number is included in the smaller one, but not vice-versa]).

(d) The reason that the Torah includes Sukos in this Pasuk - is to compare it to Pesach regarding the Mitzvah of Linah (which the Torah has already written explicitly by Pesach).

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